NBA: 5 candidates to be first-time All-Stars in 2019-20

3. Myles Turner, Indiana Pacers

There was a point a little while back in which it seemed that Myles Turner was not going to end up being the player we thought he would be. Coming into the league, he was seen to be a player who was crazy athletic and who could be very effective on both ends of the floor.

However, after a few years in the league it seemed that he plateaued and wouldn’t be as effective like we had hoped.

This seemed to be the case, but he made everyone reconsider that stance after this past season. Once Victor Oladipo went down with a season-ending injury, it seemed that the Indiana Pacers would go down with him.

However, that was not the case, and Turner and the Pacers were able to remain in contention and still ended up earning the fifth seed.

Turner stepped up when they needed him, and improved both his offensive and defensive game. From the previous season, Turner saw an uptick in his scoring average and his shooting percentage from both 2-point and 3-point range.

On defense, he improved his rebounding (which was a big question mark in his game) and led the NBA with 2.7 blocks per game to anchor the stingy Indiana defense.

He showed flashes towards the end of the season to show that he can be a player who can do exactly what we all thought he would, which is being an impact on the offensive end, and being even more so on the defensive side of the ball.

This summer, he will be a part of the USA national team who will be taking part in the FIBA World Cup. Playing alongside the other players in the USA program and having that experience should help both his game and his confidence.

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2019 All-Stars Kawhi Leonard and D’Angelo Russell both left their teams this offseason and moved to the Western Conference, so there are at least two new spots opened up in the Eastern Conference for the All-Star Game.

Turner ended this past season on a high note, and if he continues that good play into the summer at the FIBA World Cup and then into the regular season, there is a very good chance that the young big man can go from a good player to an All-Star player.